HELP! White yellowish crust on face around eyes — can’t get rid of

[KiloMae]

One of my silkies, Cheetoh, who is a little over a year old, has whitish yellow crust on her face that has not gone away for a few weeks. It’s around her eyes, beak, and ears. I noticed one of the other chickens had a similar thing a couple weeks ago but hers it gone.

Cheetoh is currently very broody so I’m not sure if that’s exacerbating the situation. But when I lock her out of the coop she acts healthy. She doesn’t have any signs of mites or bugs that I can see. And her feet look normal.

I read that it could be fungal and
I’ve put coconut oil on her face several times & it seems to temporarily look improved but comes back (maybe I need to be more consistent?). I also tried jock itch cream (anti fungal) yesterday and it looks no better today. I also can’t tell if maybe it could be some sort of drainage from her eyes?

She is quite thin from being broody and I’m worried about her. Not sure what steps to take next or how to diagnose this. Any help is very much appreciated. Photos attached

 

[Eggcessive]

Is she sitting on eggs now? If you don’t want her to hatch eggs or she has been broody for a long spell, I would immediately break her. She may have favus, or dry skin from not dust bathing. Scaly face mites would be another possibility. I would use the miconazole daily for a couple of weeks to treat favus. It wouldn’t be that much better after just a day or two. Ideally, a broody breaking pen is used for 5-8 days. I put a roost in mine, and have it on the ground with no bedding. And of course, food and water is available.

 

[KiloMae]

Is she sitting on eggs now? If you don’t want her to hatch eggs or she has been broody for a long spell, I would immediately break her. She may have favus, or dry skin from not dust bathing. Scaly face mites would be another possibility. I would use the miconazole daily for a couple of weeks to treat favus. It wouldn’t be that much better after just a day or two. Ideally, a broody breaking pen is used for 5-8 days. I put a roost in mine, and have it on the ground with no bedding. And of course, food and water is available.

Thank u for the reply! Favus was my first guess after some inital research, but it sounds like I need to try treating it daily for a while to know.
If it’s scaley face mites is it possible that she wouldn’t have it on her legs?
She certainly isn’t dust bathing as much as she needs to. I’ve been locking her out of the coop for periods but feel bad because she gets so distressed

 

[Eggcessive]

Is there a reason to lock her out of the coop? If it stresses her that I would let her do what she wants. It looks more like favus to me than scaly face mites. Those are treated with ivermectin, or using vaseline on the face to smother them.

 

[KiloMae]

Is there a reason to lock her out of the coop? If it stresses her that I would let her do what she wants. It looks more like favus to me than scaly face mites. Those are treated with ivermectin, or using vaseline on the face to smother them.

Is ivermectin or Vaseline preferred over the miconozole for favus?

She doesn’t NEED to be locked out but she has been broody for a very long time (& won’t be hatching, I have no roosters), and I just want her to be healthy, eating & dust bathing etc. Ive been taking her out to eat & drink & eventually when she gets really stressed I just let her back in

 

[Eggcessive]

Miconazole is preferred for favus. Vaseline or ivermectin are good for scaly face mites. Yes, I would break her if she is still broody. A wire dog crate with no bedding, but food and water, is good for that. It can take at least 5-7 days for a determined broody. A roost if possible helps a lot.